So I dont get it, those washing machine that has no spindle in the middle, are they any good? Also why is there such a huge difference in price for top loading and front loading machines? Are front loading machine really that good?
Also why is it that there are no dryers in Taiwan homes? I mean its so humid sometimes dry clothes gets wet…
[quote=“rahimiiii”]So I don’t get it, those washing machine that has no spindle in the middle, are they any good? Also why is there such a huge difference in price for top loading and front loading machines? Are front loading machine really that good?
Also why is it that there are no dryers in Taiwan homes? I mean its so humid sometimes dry clothes gets wet…[/quote]
Spindleless Whirlpool has done good by me. No real difference as far as I can tell.
Btw, I have a dryer…not so unsual anymore.
dryers are not popular in Taiwan because they take up too much space…also, most Taiwanese believe they can just get away with a de-humidifier for wet/humid winter months and the rest of the time, clothes will dry in an afternoon under Taiwan’s hot sun…but I am seeing more of those tiny dryers being sold nowadays…and those dryer/washer combined units…
Aren’t most of those “front-loading” machines from Panasonic, LG, etc. imported? Also, they are newer models and designs…making them more expensive…I don’t know if the mechanics are more complicated for a front-load washer to warranty their increased prices though…but the trend of front-loading washers being more expensive is the same in North America also…but the front-loading machines toss the clothes around and really do a good job of agitating them…while the top-loading ones just spin them around and they sorta become tangled together at the bottom…but I don’t see any difference between the little Taiwanese top-loading machines and the big American Maytag top-loading machines…they seem to perform about the same…
My fiancee is convinced that dryers ruin your clothes. Even when she came to the US, while at my home, she refused to allow me to put her clothes in the dryer. She insisted on hanging them from the balcony…creature of habit I guess.
What I fear about hanging clothes from her balcony is losing my clothes. Her apartment is way up high in her building. Looking down from her balcony I counted 5 indivicual lonely socks on the top of the other balconies below.
[quote=“Pluck-A-Duck”]
Aren’t most of those “front-loading” machines from Panasonic, LG, etc. imported? Also, they are newer models and designs…making them more expensive…I don’t know if the mechanics are more complicated for a front-load washer to warranty their increased prices though…but the trend of front-loading washers being more expensive is the same in North America also…but the front-loading machines toss the clothes around and really do a good job of agitating them…while the top-loading ones just spin them around and they sorta become tangled together at the bottom…but I don’t see any difference between the little Taiwanese top-loading machines and the big American Maytag top-loading machines…they seem to perform about the same…[/quote]
I think the deal with the front loaders is that they use a lot less water as well.
If you have a front loader, you can also put a dryer on top. It’s a space saving thing!
I’ve got my LG front loader installed under the kitchen counter, and it doubles as a dryer. So it’s a real space saver. The only drawback is that the dryer function takes twice as long as a conventional dryer.
Does anyone know where to buy the lint traps for washing machines? I’ve been to all the big chain stores and enquired, but you’d think I was asking for a flying washing machine from their reactions. 
You know what I’m talking about: those little net pockets that the water runs through on its way back into the drum.
Thanks!
[quote=“Stray Dog”]Does anyone know where to buy the lint traps for washing machines? I’ve been to all the big chain stores and enquired, but you’d think I was asking for a flying washing machine from their reactions.
You know what I’m talking about: those little net pockets that the water runs through on its way back into the drum.
Thanks![/quote]
I think you need to contact the manufacturer for that…I think each brand has its own propriety little “snap-in” head for the lint trap…
[quote=“derek1978”]My fiancee is convinced that dryers ruin your clothes. Even when she came to the US, while at my home, she refused to allow me to put her clothes in the dryer. She insisted on hanging them from the balcony…creature of habit I guess.
What I fear about hanging clothes from her balcony is losing my clothes. Her apartment is way up high in her building. Looking down from her balcony I counted 5 indivicual lonely socks on the top of the other balconies below.[/quote]
In the long-term, your fiancee is correct. I stopped using a dryer years ago. My clothes now last much longer. The heat really does wear the clothes out faster.
In my experience, the top-loaders with no agitator post do a crap job. Some of the newer ones are designed to agitate a bit better, but I think they still suck. They also seem to put a good bit of wear on clothes by twisting them up so much. I’ve got the kind of top-loader that actually works the same way as a front loader. You just spin the barrel around to find the door and load it up. I don’t think I’d bother with a Taiwanese or American top-loader ever again.
I don’t care about dryers but I’m not impressed at all about the Taiwanese love affair with top loaders. I bought a good front loader in the UK a few years back for about NT$10,000 (incl. 17.5% VAT) and I don’t see why they’re treated as some kind of premium luxury product over here. In my experience, even expensive top loading machines just do not work.
I’ve tried 4 different top loading machines so far and not one has succeeded in cleaning even the lightest of stains. My clothes come out smelling nice from the washing powder and that’s it. Most annoyingly, several expensive shirts have been ruined so if I have anything worth more than about NT$1,000 it’s cheaper for me to get it dry-cleaned. Grrrr. How do Taiwanese people put up with these damn things?
I’d just buy a cheap washing machine and a good dehumidifier. We’ve had a Teco for 3 years now. No spindle. It works fine.
The dehumidifier will dry a batch of clothes in 1 day or less depending on brand and setting and dry out the rest of the room as well. Better for the clothes. Better for the room and whatever is stored in there.
But, if you’re short on space and got a spare 30-40,000nt go for it with the combo unit washer dryer.
So how much does a mini dryer cost in Taipei? And how much clothes does it do at once?
I bought a full-sized dryer for about 6,000 a few years back. The problem with it (local make) is that it takes FOREVER to dry stuff (especially towels and sheets), but I can’t imagine life without it here with all of the damp weather. Plus, there’s nothing worse than air-dried, crunchy underwear 
!!!
I only use the dryer when it’s rainy for days on end, or else the clothes just never seem to dry completely. And it does seem to take much longer even in the dryer. I think the dryers here aren’t as powerful. Back home I used to throw my whole load of laundry from the washer to the dryer and it’ll all be dry in an hour. Here, my selected few items of clothing take 2 hours.
Usually though, you just don’t need it, clothes dry in a afternoon. Most homes don’t have it as it just takes up space they don’t have.
[quote=“kellohitty”]I only use the dryer when it’s rainy for days on end, or else the clothes just never seem to dry completely. And it does seem to take much longer even in the dryer. I think the dryers here aren’t as powerful. Back home I used to throw my whole load of laundry from the washer to the dryer and it’ll all be dry in an hour. Here, my selected few items of clothing take 2 hours.
Usually though, you just don’t need it, clothes dry in a afternoon. Most homes don’t have it as it just takes up space they don’t have.[/quote]
Yea thats cause dryers in the US uses 220 and they’re big, and the 6000 dollar dryer is actually a small dryer. I used to live in a house that has gas dryers… bet you never see that in Taiwan (plus people get paranoid about it due to all the gas poisionings) That was in the USA… I think if its really humid you can probably take your cothe to a laundromat and dry it there… they have some just have to look. Im probably going to hot wash some T shirts there for tie dying (I need to get some finishes and sizing off or else the dye doesnt take too well…)
Do the little Taiwanese dryers and those dryer/washer combos have an active exhaust like the big US dryers?
The lint catcher on my old Hitachi also left to go to a better place… I couldn’t find a replacement, so now I’ve replaced it with a piece of nylon stocking. It does the trick! 
The big problem for me is that the taiwanese don’t do warm or hot washes.
I remember I suggested this once and they thought I was mad.
Cleaning whites in cold water will make them grey eventually.
Given the cost of front loading washers you might as well go to a coin op laundramat… cause it would take years to break even… Some coin op places uses front loading washers…